In this episode of B2B Marketing: The Provocative Truth, Benedict chats to Andrea Linehan about marketing’s potential for driving revenue in B2B.

There’s a problem with revenue in B2B marketing. Marketers are not maximising the potential for marketing to drive revenue when it is so crucial to the business’s success. Is the issue down to marketers not willing to put their reputation on the line, or are there bigger problems with current strategies? Either way, in order for marketing to justify its function (and budget), marketing needs to show how it directly contributes to revenue.

Andrea Linehan is a seasoned marketer primarily focused on fintech. She is the CMO of CurrencyFair.com and Zai, and she is an advisory board member for the CMO Council as well as a board member for the Irish International Business Network. Prior to joining CurrencyFair.com, Andrea served as CMO for GRID Finance.  In 2021, she was listed as part of the Top 30 Most Influential Fintech Marketers by The Fintech Marketing Hub.

You can find Andrea Linehan on Linkedin.

You can watch full video versions of the podcast on our YouTube channel.

Ready to provoke the truth? Get in touch at alan-agency.com.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode of B2B Marketing: The Provocative Truth, Benedict speaks to Lucy Birch about what a divestment means for B2B marketing, and the CMO’s role in guarding the business’s values.

Divestments are unique opportunities as it provides a chance for marketing to re-shape the brand values so that they align with the business’s future. However, this is much easier said than done; it’s tricky to balance establishing new, authentic principles that will guide the business going forward and managing employee’s expectations of the business’s identity. How can a CMO be the guiding voice of the company’s values while managing the responsibility of the re-brand?

Lucy Birch is a highly experienced leader in marketing, brand, and communications across both B2C and B2B businesses, and she has a proven track record of leading teams on the UK, European, and global level. She is currently serving as Chief Marketing and Communications Officer for Kantar Public, but prior to this, she has held several senior positions at PwC including Global Strategic Marketing Leader, and UK Marketing and Brand Director as well as positions at KPMG.

You can find Lucy Birch on Linkedin.

You can watch full video versions of the podcast on our YouTube channel.

Ready to provoke the truth? Get in touch at alan-agency.com.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode of B2B Marketing: The Provocative Truth, Benedict sits down with Nandik Barbhaiya to discuss how to get the board on board with brand.

It’s fair to say that most marketers understand the intrinsic value of brand-building. Even if they are not prioritising it for their business, marketers know how building a strong brand helps the business longer-term. However, it can often be difficult for marketers, and even the CMO to articulate that importance to the board, especially if there’s no clear way to trace brand to revenue. So what is the case that marketing can make?

Nandik Barbhaiya is the MD and Founder of Mr. Brand Genie, and he is an accomplished marketer with 17+ years of experience. Nandik’s most recent role was as Interim CMO for the &me Investing App at Moneyfarm, but he has held several senior marketing roles throughout his career. Such roles include CMO of ETX Capital, Vice President Marketing (FTC) for Finixio, CMO (FTC) of Stenn, Global Head of Marketing at ForexTime, and more.

You can find Nandik Barbhaiya on Linkedin.

You can watch full video versions of the podcast on our YouTube channel.

Ready to provoke the truth? Get in touch at alan-agency.com.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode of B2B Marketing: The Provocative Truth, Benedict speaks to Andrew Davies to break down the implications of M&A on marketing. 

Mergers and acquisitions put companies in unique positions regarding their brand. When integrating marketing teams together, there is both an exciting and daunting opportunity to unify the new business and create a bulletproof brand that will progress the company forward post-M&A. But what do you really need to know about how to appropriately move forward? How can you ensure your business’s growth in the future?

Andrew Davies is CMO of Paddle, and he is an experienced and accomplished marketer in the SaaS space. Since joining Paddle in early 2022, Andrew has overseen and continues to lead the company’s marketing function and enabled its significant growth. Prior to joining Paddle, Andrew’s previous roles include VP Corporate Marketing at Optimizely and Co-Founder/CMO of Idio. Additionally, Andrew sits on the board of Ninety CIC and is an active advisor and investor in early-stage startups.

You can find Andrew Davies on Linkedin.

You can watch full video versions of the podcast on our YouTube channel.

Ready to provoke the truth? Get in touch at alan-agency.com.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode of B2B Marketing: The Provocative Truth, Benedict chats to Sam Shrager about what truly effective content and SEO marketing looks like.

It’s really easy to get caught up in the idea that you have to push out content to keep up certain appearances, but if you’re approaching content strategy this way, it becomes increasingly difficult to actually give your audience what they want. And it definitely becomes harder to make an impact on them. What do B2B marketers really need to consider in order to create meaningful content that achieves business objectives and doesn’t waste budget?

Sam Shrager is the Executive Director, Marketing and Communications at BCB Group, and she has significant experience as a senior marketer in financial services, particularly crypto. At BCB Group, she leads strategy and communications for all communications as well as works with stakeholders to push the business forward in the crypto industry. Prior to joining BCB Group, she served in a number of senior marketing positions at business such as Arbion, Bluepod Media Worldwide, NKB Group, GEODYNAMICS WorldWide, and more. 

You can find Sam Shrager on Linkedin.

You can watch full video versions of the podcast on our YouTube channel.

Ready to provoke the truth? Get in touch at alan-agency.com.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode of B2B Marketing: The Provocative Truth, Benedict sits down with Madlen Nicolaus to discuss how obsession with pipeline could have an impact on brand awareness.

With an impending recession, there are valid concerns about how companies are going to hit targets. There has been a growing concern on how to optimise pipelines and ensure short-term results. Focusing too much on pipeline will take time and budget away from long-term brand building. There needs to be a balance of the two in order to be truly successful. What changes does B2B marketing need to make in order to turn it around?

Madlen Nicolaus is an accomplished marketer in both B2B and B2C businesses, and she has over 18 years of experience. She has a proven history of implementing and managing successful marketing plans. She is VP Marketing EMEA for SAP Concur, and she has been with the business for almost six years. Prior to joining SAP Concur, she held several positions at Salesforce including Head of EMEA Cloud Marketing. Madlen has also previously worked at Kodak and Ketchum PR.

You can find Madlen Nicolaus on Linkedin.

You can watch full video versions of the podcast on our YouTube channel.

Ready to provoke the truth? Get in touch at alan-agency.com.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode of B2B Marketing: The Provocative Truth, Benedict talks to Birim Gonulsen about the consumerization of B2B, and the lessons B2B can learn from B2C.

Historically, there was the assumption that B2B and B2C marketing are completely different and separate from each other. However, this is becoming increasingly less true. There will always be a distinction, but as it becomes more important to market to the individuals of a business as opposed to the vague idea of the business as a whole, there are lessons that each type of marketing could learn from each other. What could a B2C marketer bring to the table in a B2B context?

Birim Gonulsen is a seasoned senior marketer with 20+ years of experience. She is the CMO, Southern Europe for Visa, and she has been with them for almost five years. Prior to joining Visa, Birim’s marketing career focused on B2C. She previously worked as Senior Director adidas Brand, EM North for adidas and as Marketing Director / Member of Executive Board for Hurriyet. She has also held many roles at the Coca-Cola Company including Marketing Manager and Business Development Manager.

You can find Birim Gonulsen on Linkedin.

You can watch full video versions of the podcast on our YouTube channel.

Ready to provoke the truth? Get in touch at alan-agency.com.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode of B2B Marketing: The Provocative Truth, Benedict sits down with James Watson to discuss all things thought leadership, and how it can educate B2B industries.

Thought leadership is everywhere in B2B industries. However, it doesn’t always make a lasting impact on its target audience, and it almost never actually educates the target audience on a given concept. Effective thought leadership has to leave the audience with a piece of insight, and that they are walking away with more information than they previously had. But what’s the truth behind achieving exactly that? How do we get there?

James Watson is the CMO of The Glimpse Group, and he has 20+ years of marketing experience. Particularly, in the last 10 years, James has focused his marketing efforts on immersive technology, and he has worked with a variety of organisations. His previous roles include CMO of Immerse, Client Services Director at Imagination, and Business Director at OgilvyOne. Additionally, James serves as Co-Chair of the VR AR Association and as a member of BSI’s VR & AR Committee.

You can find James Watson on Linkedin.

You can watch full video versions of the podcast on our YouTube channel.

Ready to provoke the truth? Get in touch at alan-agency.com.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode of B2B Marketing: The Provocative Truth, Benedict talks to Malcolm Fried about the crucial need for evidence-based marketing.

With technology and data ever changing the B2B industry, marketers have more evidence than ever to effectively activate campaigns. However, it would certainly seem that marketers still don’t take a truly evidence-based approach to their marketing. Why have marketers not embraced decision-making qualified with data? And what are their concerns regarding utilising the plethora of information at their disposal?

Malcolm Fried is the CMO of Ninety One, and he is a seasoned marketer with 20+ years of experience. Before becoming Ninety One’s CMO in the company’s demerge from Investec, Malcolm served as CMO at Investec. Additionally, he has worked as a marketing consultant as well as Head of Media & Broadcast EMEA for Bloomberg.

You can find Malcolm Fried on Linkedin.

You can watch full video versions of the podcast on our YouTube channel.

Ready to provoke the truth? Get in touch at alan-agency.com.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode of B2B Marketing: The Provocative Truth, Benedict sits down with Ben O’Connor of alan. agency to discuss the truth behind B2B marketers’ ambitions and convictions.

In alan. agency’s recent research report, ‘The Power of Provocation’, business leaders agreed that marketers needed to raise their ambitions and take charge of their work. However, is it true that B2B marketers have no ambition? Or are there numerous factors inhibiting a marketer’s ability to pursue and create compelling work? Ben O’Connor, with his inside perspective with clients, illuminates what might be really going on.

Ben O’Connor is the Head of Client Services at alan. agency, and he has been with alan. for the past two years. He is an experienced business director with a curious, strategic, and creative approach, and he brings this perspective to his fearless leadership of alan’s ambitious client services team. Prior to joining alan, Ben has served as Business Director at Aesop Agency, Gravity Global, and Ogilvy.

You can find Ben O’Connor on Linkedin.

You can watch full video versions of the podcast on our YouTube channel.

Ready to provoke the truth? Get in touch at alan-agency.com.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.